Gerald Robotnik
Professor Gerald Robotnik is a character from the Sonic the Hedgehog video games and other assorted media. An important figure in the history of Sonic's world, he was the greatest scientist of his generation, prominent in the fields of genetics, robotics and alternative energy. He is best known as the creator of Shadow the Hedgehog as well as being the grandfather of Sonic's arch-nemesis, Dr. Eggman. History Early life Little is known about Prof. Gerald's early life, except that he came from a long line of scientific experts. During his lifetime, Gerald was responsible for a number of achievements; he wrote a book on the Earth's Fourth Great Civilisation (believed to be the ancient Echidna race), designed the Space Colony ARK which would become the centre of the majority of his research, and invented the Chaos Emerald-based power source known as the Chaos Drive. As well as being a remarkable scientist, Gerald was also a devoted grandfather who spent a great deal of his time caring for his granddaughter Maria. Maria suffered from a rare genetic condition known as NIDS (Neuro-Immune Deficiency Syndrome) and Gerald would spend his final years researching a cure for the disease. The search for a cure would lead to the development of Project: Shadow, what Gerald would refer to as the "ultimate life-form". Project: Shadow As Prof. Gerald researched a cure for Maria's condition, he was contacted by the then-president of the United Federation who requested his expertise in order to develop a formula for immortality. Gerald initially refused, believing such research would cross boundaries that man was not meant to cross and feared that such research could be used for the purpose of warfare. However, the possibility that this research could lead to a cure for Maria proved too great to pass up, and so Gerald set to work on Project: Shadow aboard the Space Colony ARK. Progress on the ultimate life-form proved to be slow and the United Federation government was growing impatient. In desperation, Gerald sought assistance from an alien power known as Black Doom, the leader of the Black Arms. Gerald and Black Doom struck a deal: Gerald would have his ultimate life-form deliver the seven Chaos Emeralds to Black Doom in fifty years time when the Black Comet next passed by Earth, and in exchange Black Doom would provide his own DNA for the project. However, Gerald discovered Black Doom's plans to use the Chaos Emeralds to enslave the human race. Realizing his mistake, Gerald secretly plotted against Black Doom by developing the Eclipse Cannon to destroy the Black Comet and the Black Arms upon their return. With Black Doom's blood incorporated into the development process, Project: Shadow began to move forward. Initially, Gerald and his colleagues succeeded in creating a prototype life-form dubbed the "Biolizard", but this prototype proved to be defective as its vital organs and limbs were misshapen and unable to function properly without additional mechanical augmentations. The Biolizard was also savage and uncontrollable, and so the project staff had the creature placed in stasis. Gerald eventually redesigned Shadow with a new physique based on a hedgehog which proved to be more stable, but he was unwilling to create a life solely to be used as a weapon. He instilled within his creation the capacity for self-determination, allowing his ultimate life-form to experience emotions such as compassion. Thus, after several years of painstaking research and development, Shadow the Hedgehog was born. Disgrace and execution As Project: Shadow neared completion, the United Federation government grew concerned over the project. They had somehow become aware of Prof. Gerald's contact with Black Doom and the Black Arms' involvement with the project and feared that Gerald was developing a weapon against them. By the time Shadow had been completed, the government had decided that the project posed a potential threat to humanity and sent the Guardian Units of Nations (G.U.N.) to shut down the ARK and seize all of Gerald's research material. Most of Gerald's colleagues, even his granddaughter Maria, were killed when the military raided the colony. Gerald himself was arrested and brought back to Earth while Shadow was jettisoned from the colony. Shadow's pod would be recovered by G.U.N. and brought to their Prison Island base where Prof. Gerald was incarcerated. Some time after the ARK's shut-down, the government released the details to the public. Gerald was blamed for causing an accident that led to the deaths of his staff and the colony's shut-down, thus the public came to view Gerald in contempt. Driven to despair and ultimately madness, Gerald grew angry and desired revenge not just against the government that had betrayed him but against the entire world. He spent his final days carrying out experiments for the military in an effort to weaponize Shadow, but secretly reprogrammed Shadow with false memories and a desire to avenge Maria's death. He also developed a program that would cause the ARK to fall to Earth once the seven Chaos Emeralds had been installed within the Eclipse Cannon. With the colony overloaded with Chaos energy, the ARK's impact would completely shatter the planet. Aware of the professor's broken mental state, G.U.N. feared that Gerald might find some way to retaliate against them as long as he remained alive. Having been condemned for crimes against humanity, Gerald was sentenced to death and executed. Personality Before his descent into madness, Gerald was a good man and a profound humanitarian, the very much opposite of his psychotic grandson Dr. Eggman. He was devoted to using his intellect to help mankind and bring them happiness and hope through the power of science, which he believed was the reason for his existence. As old age began to catch up to him, though, Gerald would become more forgetful. Gerald was a man of strong ethical standards, refusing to use his genius for the wrong reasons. He initially refused to lead Project: Shadow since he thought obtaining immortality was against nature and because he had no interest in aiding with war. That said, he was not above breaking his ethics for certain reasons, like when being forced by the higher-ups or when he thought it was for the greater good. Even when in such situations, however, Gerald went out of his way to make sure his research would have the potential for good as well, as demonstrated when he designed Shadow with the capacity for emotion. He also held the strong belief that power born from the desire to protect rather than the desire to conquer would make all conflicts cease to exist. When Maria was killed, Gerald went through a profound change, as he was consumed by grief and slowly went insane. He eventually became a rage-filled psychopath, developing a deep hatred for humanity who he blamed for Maria's death, and grew obsessed with revenge by committing global genocide. Even in his last moments, all Gerald had to express was his contempt at humanity, and he died a broken man. Category:Monster Creators Category:Sonic the Hedgehog Category:Deceased